Warm

by CrimsonWolf360

Chapter 26

The Next Day

Twilight paced back and forth in the waiting room of the hospital, her brow deeply furrowed in concern. She found herself wearing a thin trench into the floor as she pondered over the situation the previous night. Across from her, snoozing away after having been woken up and dragged over to the hospital with her the previous night, was Spike. Beside him, an equally yet more restrained Midnight sat, her eyes glued to the spot on the floor just before her. Her armor was forgone, making her look like any ordinary civilian.

Sitting across from them, was AppleJack and Fluttershy, both noticeably perturbed from the events of the previous night.
For the tenth time in just as many minutes, Twilight paused and opened her mouth to apologize to Midnight. Fortunately, she was spared yet another instance of not having the right words, by the door opening behind her. A nurse walked out, her pink mane tied up in a bun just like the last time Twilight had seen her.

"Nurse Redheart?" Twilight inquired, quickly making her way over to the nurse.

"It was a bit of a doozy, but we were able to stop the bleeding and patch up the wound. He's stable and resting in his room." Nurse Redheart explained, giving a soft smile.

"Oh, thank Celestia." Midnight sighed, sinking into her chair slightly.

"I'm so relieved to hear that. May we see him?" Twilight pressed, curiously.

Nurse Redheart nodded, "Just try to keep it to two of you at the most, Princess. We don't exactly have the huge fancy rooms they do up in Canterlot." She replied with a chuckle.

"You two go on ahead. 'Shy and I can look after Spike for ya'." AppleJack offered.

"Thank you so much, AppleJack. You're the best." Twilight replied.

"Don't mention it, Sugarcube." AppleJack nodded as Fluttershy sat next to Spike, draping her wing over him like a blanket.

Midnight quickly hopped off her chair and made her way over to the door, falling in line as the nurse pony led her and Twilight down the hall. Soon enough they arrived at the designated room and were allowed entry. Upon walking inside, Midnight and Twilight saw that the extent of the damage was confined to Sky's wither. The entirety of his shoulder was covered in bandages with some bloodied spots around the place he was shot, but otherwise, the stallion looked completely fine.

"I'll leave you three alone. A doctor should be along in about twenty minutes to explain what we found." Nurse Redheart announced.

"Thank you, Nurse." Twilight gratefully replied.

As the nurse left, Midnight quickly rushed over to Sky's side. She held his hoof in her forelegs as she looked over his injuries.

"Hey, big guy... you okay?" She asked, the concern bleeding over in her voice.

Sky nodded, "Yeah... honestly, my ears were ringing so bad that I didn't even realize I was hurt at first." He chuckled, before wincing.

"Try to take it easy... no sudden movements as that can make it hurt a lot more." Twilight suggested.

"You got it... Princess." Sky responded, laying his head back against his pillow.

For a few moments, their was only silence in the air as Twilight's gaze fell to the floor once more. Midnight and Sky could feel the tension slowly building in the air as the unspoken question of the day quickly filled all of their minds.

"So..." Sky trailed off.

"I am so sorry that Cooper hurt you... I just... I still can't believe it, myself." Twilight muttered, shaking her head in defeat.

"Oh, it's not that bad. I've been hurt worse-" Sky began.

"No, you don't understand," Twilight cut him off, "-Cooper shouldn't have had that gun in the first place... it's my fault you were hurt like this." She admitted, sinking to her haunches.

"Princess... what are you saying?" Midnight pressed.

Twilight let out a heavy sigh, "Cooper wasn't supposed to have that gun... I-I lied to Princess Celestia and Luna when they were here. They think they have the only gun in Equestria... Truth is, they have the safest gun in Equestria."" She explained.

"You... lied? To Princess Celestia?" Midnight parroted, her eyes wide in shock.

Twilight shamefully nodded, "I did..."

"Why would you do that?" Sky pressed.

"I... thought I was protecting him. Cooper hasn't had anything to protect himself aside from his weapons for years... it seemed like a good idea at the time. I trusted him to never use it unless it was a truly life or death situation... but the way he's been acting lately? I should have done something before it came to this. He needs help... I just wish that I had acted before you could get hurt." Twilight elaborated, her head hung low.

Sky and Midnight shared a look for a moment before the latter turned back to Twilight, "Princess... what was it that you and Cooper were arguing about last night?" She questioned.

Twilight shook her head, "It was... Cooper wants me to do something that isn't possible. I tried to explain that to him but he just... couldn't see that. I guess I don't blame him for that but... I don't know, everything is so much more complicated and confusing now."

"What exactly did he want you to do?" Sky tilted his head to the side, "I mean... what could possibly drive him to get that angry?"

"He wanted me to bring his family back." Twilight admitted, her wings drooping slightly as she said the words.

Both Sky and Midnight winced at the explanation and its implications.

"Yeah, fair enough... still pissed at him for shooting me, but I can at least see why he was so upset." Sky acknowledged.

"The fact of the matter is... as much as I wish she wasn't... Princess Luna is right. Cooper is dangerous... but right now, he's scared. I need to find him and bring him back." Twilight declared, firmly.

"Do you have any idea where he could have gone?" Midnight questioned.

"I have one or two... but I need to be sure before starting a search party again." Twilight replied, slowly taking to pacing across the room once more.

"I'll help you search." Midnight offered.

"I can't ask you to do that-" Twilight began, but paused as Midnight held up a hoof, silencing her.

"He's my charge, Princess. It's my duty to protect him, even if he's a danger to us just as much as himself." Midnight explained.

"I may need to smack some sense into him when I get out of here but I'll help as soon as I can." Sky offered.

"No chance. You just rest and recover. That was a nasty wound and I'd prefer if I never had to see you covered in so much blood ever again." Midnight shook her head.

"Aww, you do care about me." Sky teased, receiving a raspberry blown his way from Midnight.

"Even after... what he did... you still want to help him so readily?" Twilight asked, slowly.

Sky and Midnight both nodded, "Cooper isn't a bad human... he's just hurt. I think we can help him get over what happened to him but... well, it's gonna take more than just a hug and well wishes." Sky admitted.

Twilight allowed a soft smile to form on her face as she looked over Cooper's friends, the thought of how willing they were to forgive him and help him, warming her heart considerably.

"That truly does mean a lot to me, but I think the best thing you can do is stay with Sky. I know you care about him more than just as a comrade." Twilight replied, making the dark unicorn blush.

"Are you sure, Princess?" Midnight asked, uncertainly.

"I am. There's a chance Cooper could come back on his own, too. It'd be better for him to have a friendly face around f that happens." Twilight replied.

The group shared a soft smile, but they were soon distracted by the sound of voices from down the hallway. Twilight's ear cocked back toward the source of the noise, the rest of her head following as more and more voices echoed through the halls.

"What's... going on out there?" Midnight wondered aloud, slowly walking around Sky's bed.

"I'll go look." Twilight offered, trotting over to the door.

"I'll come with you. Sky, just hang out in here, will you?" Midnight called over her wither as she followed Twilight out the door.

"Wasn't planning on going anywhere!" Sky called after them.

As Twilight and Midnight entered the hallway, the voices instantly became more clear, and the panic filling them all the more evident. Sharing a quick look, the duo of mares took off toward the front lobby of the hospital, where the commotion appeared to be coming from. Just a few seconds of trotting down the hall passed before they arrived at the front, the voices now nearly deafening as what sounded like dozens of ponies shouted over each other.

As the lobby came into view, Twilight saw that her estimation of the number of voices was, if anything, an underestimation. Nearly the entire town was crammed into the relatively small hospital lobby. The staff were desperately trying to maintain order, but the crowd appeared to be nearing angry mob levels of panic and anger.

As quick as she could, Twilight spotted AppleJack, Spike, and Fluttershy all trying their best to calm the crowd alongside the hospital staff, to no avail.

"What are you all even yelling about!" Spike called.

"P-p-please calm down!" Fluttershy squeaked.

"Will ya'll just quiet down!" AppleJack shouted, though even her voice was drowned out.

"AppleJack! What's going on!?" Twilight cried, rushing to her friend's side.

Upon seeing and hearing her alicorn friend rushing over to her, AppleJack turned to acknowledge her, "Ah have no idea! One minute there wasn't hardly anypony here! The next, the entire town was at the door!" She explained over the shouting.

Before Twilight could press further, several voices cried out in recognition, "There she is! There's Princess Twilight!"

"Where!?"

"There!"

"She knows what happened!"

Twilight nearly scrambled back as the entire focus of the crowd suddenly shifted from undirected angry shouting to an entirely focused crowd all directing their grievances and fears straight to her. She tried to hold her hooves up in a placating matter but the gathered ponies didn't quiet down at all. Instead, they continued to barrage her with questions.

"What happened!?"

"Is it true that he can control lightning?! What else could that thunder have been!?"

Feeling her ears splaying against her skull, Twilight quickly cast several spells to amplify her voice. Seeing the inevitable coming, her friends quickly covered their ears as Twilight took a deep breath.

"QUIET!" She screamed, so loudly that the glass windows nearly shattered.

The loud mob before her was startled silent by her sudden spike in volume, most of the ponies present rubbing their ears and wincing as all they heard was ringing.

"Now, one of you, tell me what in the hay is going on right now!" Twilight demanded, stomping her hoof into the floor to emphasize her point.

Through the crowd of ponies, Twilight saw some movement, and quickly enough, a mocha brown coat and silvery grey mane came into her view. Mayor Mare stepped in front of the crowd, politely clearing her throat as she fixed Twilight with an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry for everypony just showing up like this, Princess. Town Hall was an absolute mess this morning. Everypony in town heard what I can only compare to a lightning bolt come from your castle last night. Dozens of ponies saw you rushing one of Mister Cooper's guards to the hospital and they wanted answers. I told them that I would head over to ask you myself but... well, the majority of them wanted to hear it for themselves." Mayor Mare explained.

"Ya mean this ain't even all of 'em?" AppleJack raised an eyebrow.

"Afraid not," Mayor Mare shook her head, before turning back to Twilight, "Is he alright?" She asked, softly.

Twilight gave a quick nod, "Cooper's guard is okay. He's in his room, making a full recovery right now."

Mayor Mare let out a small sigh of relief, "That's good to hear. I do wish him a speedy recovery. Now... could you please explain what exactly happened?"

The rest of the crowd quickly murmured in agreement.

Twilight bit her lip as she looked over the crowd of ponies surrounding her. Even with the shield of her title and friends there, she felt completely exposed and vulnerable. The question heavy in all of their eyes only made the pit already forming in her stomach just that much worse.

"Well... there was a misunderstanding." Twilight explained, vaguely.

"What kind of misunderstanding ends with a royal guard needing to be rushed over to the hospital for medical attention and half the town being woken up by something they all describe as lightning?" Mayor Mare inquired.

"Well..." Twilight tried to stall, her mind racing to come up with some suitable explanation.

Even though they helped rush Sky over to the hospital alongside her, Twilight could see the same question in both Fluttershy and AppleJack's eyes. Even Spike looked at her with, his expression practically begging her to tell him what had happened.

"It was Cooper, wasn't it!?" One of the ponies in the back called out.

Twilight's eyes went wide and her entire body tensed at the mention of Cooper, prompting Mayor Mare to instantly pick up on her reaction.

"That seems like a 'yes' to me... is he alright? Where is Cooper?" She asked, glancing around the room.

Twilight nervously gulped as the dozens of ponies in the waiting room similarly searched amongst themselves for the lone human in town.

"Twilight..." AppleJack said, snapping her attention back to her, "It's alright to tell the truth. None of us wanna hurt Cooper none. Ah've been tryin' to piece together what happened all night and nothin' makes any sense." She offered.

Twilight wilted under the gaze of the pony meant to represent the element of Honesty, her wings sagging as she slumped to her haunches. Try as she might, she simply couldn't rationalize lying to the crowd. As much as she loathed to admit it, Cooper was a danger. Thankfully, his weapon was no longer in his possession, but the concept of him using any of the other tactics she'd witnessed on any of the townsponies made her sick.

With a heavy sigh, she addressed the crowd, "What happened was a misunderstanding between me and Cooper. He wanted something that I can't give him, and he... didn't handle it well. When his guard tried to keep him from leaving, he tried to force his way past."

Mayor Mare cocked an eyebrow back, "That much noise and blood for just trying to force his way past a guard?"

Twilight shook his head, "No... No, the truth is... Cooper still had a weapon from his world. It caused the sound you all heard and the injury that Sky received."

A chorus of gasps ran throughout the crowd. Though many of them were fuzzy on the details, the entirety of Ponyville knew of the weapons from Cooper's world and the injuries they inflicted on Twilight while she was in his world. Even the prospect of such weapons being present in Equestria- in Ponyville no less- gripped many of them with fear. Seeing this, Twilight quickly continued.

"There is good news! He doesn't have the weapon anymore. I think... I think what happened was an accident. He's been having flashbacks and... after what he's been through, it's not hard to imagine why. Cooper is dangerous, I know... but he's also in danger. He ran away last night after what happened and I need to find him. He wasn't alright when he left but I think that by now he's realizing what he's done and either going to come back and admit that he's made a mistake... or he's going to hide and run away." Twilight explained.

"You mean you have no idea where he is?!"

"He could be anywhere in Ponyville!?"

"I have to go make sure my foals are safe!"

Just as quickly as it arrived, the mob of ponies filtered out of the hospital waiting room and headed back to their homes. Some were still shaken with the news they'd heard while others simply chose to ignore it and return to their business as usual.

"That's certainly a lot of news... I hope you're sure about Cooper, Princess. I'll have to alert the town guard and have them step up patrols. Hopefully we can get him to peacefully return as you said." Mayor Mare announced, quickly bidding Twilight goodbye and heading out with the tail end of the mob.

As Twilight turned back to her friends in the waiting room, a trio of filled that managed to sneak their way into the crowd quickly beat a hasty retreat before regrouping near their clubhouse.

"Cooper's missing!" Sweetie Belle exclaimed, still slightly shaken from the news she'd heard.

"I can't believe he hurt his guard like that... that just doesn't seem like him at all." Scootaloo mentioned, raising an eyebrow as she observed Apple Bloom pacing back and forth.

"It just don't make a lick a' sense." Apple Bloom muttered.

"What doesn't?" Sweetie Belle inquired.

"All of it! Coop's a good pon-er... human. He's got issues, but that's just cause' of what happened to his family! We can't just let him run off to Celestia knows where!" Apple Bloom declared, stomping her hoof on the floor.

"You heard Twilight, Apple Bloom. Cooper did hurt his guard. That part isn't up for debate." Scootaloo rebutted.

"An' ah don't buy it. Something else must've been goin' on! You both saw how he was actin' when Rainbow did her sonic rainboom. It scared 'im. Same thing happened when he was havin' dinner at my house. Something spooked 'im and he just... went back into his past. Ah'd bet that whatever happened just reminded him of that and what happened was just an accident." Apple Bloom countered.

"Even if that's true, what can we do about it? You heard Twilight. He's gone. Nopony knows where he is." Sweetie Belle counter-countered.

"Maybe not anypony, but Ah think there's a certain zebra that Cooper might just have gone to." Apple Bloom declared.

"Zecora? You know... they were kinda giving each other... the look." Scootaloo replied, waggling her eyebrows.

"There could also be a chance that he's just gotten himself hurt in the woods and needs a rescue." Sweetie Belle excitedly chimed in.

"-And you know what it means if we find him and rescue him from whatever pit he might have fallen into!?" Scootaloo practically bounced with excitement.

"Missing human rescue cutie marks!" The trio gasped in unison, "Cutie Mark Crusader rescue squad, go!"

They clopped their hooves together in a three-way high five, before hurriedly trotting out the door.

Author's Note:

Oh the innocence of youth. Hopefully nothing bad will happen to any of them...

Comments

[BestinDworld]

What a mess this is

[Bruuuuuuuuh]

"I am. There's a chance Cooper could come back on his own, too. It'd be better for him to have a friendly face around f that happens." Twilight replied.

If not f

Also I doubt Cooper would hurt the CMC even in a flashback

[Skrepka]

Thanks for the chapter!

[ObsPerson]

As Twilight turned back to her friends in the waiting room, a trio of filled that managed to sneak their way

Fillies

Also Coop really needs to go to therapy. Like, asap.

[AHeater]

I'm more amazed that Midnight is so forgiving considering he almost killed her crush. I know if somebody messed with Coop/Twilight the other would've flipped their lid forever.

[Leviathan Eclipse]

Twilight shook his head, "No... No, the truth is... Cooper still had a weapon from his world. It caused the sound you all heard and the injury that Sky received."

Twilight shook her head*

[Leviathan Eclipse]

As Twilight turned back to her friends in the waiting room, a trio of filled that managed to sneak their way into the crowd quickly beat a hasty retreat before regrouping near their clubhouse.

Trio of fillies*

[ShortCaveman]

"Oh no not the children" !